Seoul City said on the 12th that it signed a memorandum of understanding centered on investments worth $57 million (about 80 billion won) with French quantum company Quandela.
At the signing ceremony were Kim Tae-gyun, Seoul's first vice mayor for administration; Niccolò Somaschi, Quandela CEO; Philippe Bertoux, French ambassador to Korea; and Kim Yu-seok, head of Quandela's Korea office.
Founded in 2017, Quandela is a corporations specializing in manufacturing quantum computer systems using photons. It has supplied four quantum computers to date and was selected for projects by the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC).
A photon-based approach computes by using light particles as units of information. It consumes little power while enabling high-speed operations, and it is considered favorable for commercialization because it shares many similarities with existing semiconductor manufacturing processes.
Through this MOU, Quandela plans to establish a Seoul branch. It will serve as a forward base for research and development (R&D) and manufacturing. Quandela is headquartered in Massy, southwest of Paris, and also operates overseas branches in Canada and Germany.
Seoul City said global quantum corporations are choosing Seoul one after another as an investment base, raising its profile as an investment hub for new industries such as the quantum sector. Earlier, on Oct. 10, neutral-atom-based quantum computer corporations Pasqal also released plans to invest in Seoul.
CEO Niccolò Somaschi said, "Collaboration with Seoul City is a key milestone in Quandela's global strategy," adding, "We aim to build in Seoul an ecosystem where quantum technology is truly accessible and impactful by organically linking innovation, research, and industrial applications."
Kim Tae-gyun, Seoul's first vice mayor for administration, said, "Seoul is a city with outstanding talent, technology infrastructure, and the energy of innovation, and Quandela's investment decision is an excellent choice," adding, "We will continue to provide closer support for global corporations to invest in Seoul so that Seoul's quantum ecosystem can grow into the center of the global quantum industry beyond Asia."